MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Christian Covenant School Lions volleyball team is preparing themselves for another deep run in the postseason this year after ending the previous season 12-6 record and making a deep run at districts. 

“Last season I thought was pretty good,” said Head Coach Dean Spurbeck. “We didn’t quite make it to state, (but) they continued to get better.” 

Lions senior SanTahna Ferguson said last year’s team was very talented and worked well together. In the district tournament they made it into the quarterfinals. 

The team comes into the 2025 season with a younger roster after losing five starters in the offseason, leaving Ferguson as the only senior. She wants to be a leader for the team this season and instill a sense of pride for being on the team, she said.   

“I want to leave a legacy. I want these girls to know how much this team meant to me and I want to lead by example and see who wants to come up and take my spot when I go,” said Ferguson. 

Ferguson said she is looking forward to the opportunity to work with her teammates and watch them grow. 

“I truly appreciate being on this team because it’s a team I’ve been on for a couple of years now and I’ve seen everyone grow in their own different ways,” she said.  

Abigail Stanley is returning as a junior and will also provide support as an experienced player. Stanley and Ferguson are the only two upperclassmen this year. 

Stanley is looking forward to seeing how much the team has improved since last season, she said. She feels confident as the seasonbegins. She plans to help get the younger players used to playing on the team and prep them for strong competition as the season progresses. 

“I’m just trying to get these girls to have fun, but still work hard,” she said. 

The varsity team will be starting four eighth graders alongside the high school players. Despite the young team, Spurbeck said the Lions are coming along very well and have some notable talent with the younger players.   

This season will be the Lions’ fourth year back in the volleyball program. The team’s success is realized, in part, due to developing skills at the middle school level. 

“It’s developing where we teach the same thing and they can just step in and go,” he said. 

The main goal for the Lions for this year is to be more aggressive offensively. Spurbeck said he wants to train players to be able to pass to each other seamlessly and hit from any part of the court, rather than mostly from the outside. 

The team's youth is a challenge, but Spurbeck said his team is building up to be capable of handling itself against the other teams in the league. He said he will continue to work with the players to ensure that they know what to do in any given situation. 

“There’s some young girls that are going to be very good coming from the middle schools up that are going to be hopefully very strong,” said Spurbeck.  

The Lions first game of the season will be on the road against Odessa Monday Sept. 8 at 6 p.m. 

    Junior player, Abigail Stanley gets ready to receive the ball during practice. Stanley said she is looking forward to seeing how much the team has grown in the offseason and helping out with developing the younger players.
  

    Lions player Shay Kast jumps in the air, ready to hit the ball during practice. Despite being a younger team, coach Dean Spurbeck said he has a lot of confidence in the abilities of the players.
  

    Lions Liana Spike runs toward the net ready to make a play on the ball during practice. Coach Dean Spurbeck said one of the goals of the team is to try to be more aggressive.
  

    During a Lions volleyball practice, Emma Collins prepares to pass the ball back to her teammate to spike. This year is the fourth year back in the volleyball program for the Lions.
  

    Lions Clarissa Shopbell throws the ball back to her teammate during practice. Coach Dean Spurbeck said he has seen a lot of talent from the younger players on the team since they have begun developing the players at the middle school level.